If you’re currently eligible for historic preservation tax credits that reimburse you 20 to 40% of your renovation costs, it’s important that you act now – you may not be eligible for the tax credit once the 2010 Census data come out and it looks like that will happen in May of this year (though it may be as late as August). New York State will begin using the data shortly after it comes out. The application process can be rather complicated (depending on what you’re doing) – so you should get started now. And my understanding is that you only have to have your initial application in before the new data are implemented. That application doesn’t have to be perfect – you can work out the details shortly thereafter.

The reason why this is important is because I’m convinced most of Harlem will not be eligible for the tax credits once the 2010 Census data are implemented. The tax credit only applies to census tracts that are below the median income for the state. Take our census tract for example (tract 222): In 2000 the median household income for New York was $43,393, for our tract it was $38,293 – so really close. [I think they’re using median household income, if they’re using family income the numbers were $51,691 / $41,994, and if they’re using per capita income the numbers were $23,389 / $22,402.]

So Harlem neighborhoods were just under the cut off in 2000 and Harlem has improved drastically in the past 10 years. Even with the recession it’s improved much faster in the past 10 years than the state as a whole. I just can’t imagine that we’ll be eligible based on 2010 numbers – now is the moment to get the tax credit…